LINCOLN, Neb. - The No. 1 Nebraska volleyball team swept Wright State 25-16, 25-16, 25-20 in front of a crowd of 8,731 at John Cook Arena at the Bob Devaney Sports Center on day one of the Ameritas Players Challenge on Friday night.

Harper Murray had 11 kills and nine digs while hitting .500, and freshman Manaia Ogbechie recorded eight kills and five blocks in her first collegiate start, and she hit .583. Virginia Adriano chipped in seven kills and four blocks. 

The Huskers (5-0) hit .330 and held the Raiders (2-2) to a .073 hitting percentage. 

Andi Jackson tallied six kills, and Taylor Landfair and Skyler Pierce each had three. Bergen Reilly notched 30 assists and nine digs. Laney Choboy also added nine digs. 

Nebraska had eight blocks to one for Wright State.

Set 1: Sigler served an ace to start the match and the Huskers built a 10-6 lead. Wright State rallied to go ahead 13-12 after a 5-1 run. But the Huskers answered with a 10-1 run to gain control, 22-14. Murray, Jackson and Landfair had back-to-back-to-back kills in that stretch, and Murray served an ace. Two more kills by Landfair, and one each by Ogbechie and Reilly closed out a 25-16 win. 

Set 2: Wright State led 6-4 when the Huskers scored a 7-1 run keyed by two Ogbechie kills and two blocks by the freshman with Adriano to go up 11-7. Two straight kills by Murray made it 14-9, and another one put NU up 15-11 at the media timeout. Pierce and Ogbechie combined for a block before Ogbechie and Pierce kills made it 19-13 Big Red. Adriano had three kills down the stretch and a block with Ogbechie as the Huskers won 25-16 again. 

Set 3: The Raiders built a 9-4 lead out of the intermission break. The Huskers chipped away to within 11-10 after a block by Adriano and Jackson, and a kill by Jackson. NU went up 16-13 after back-to-back kills by Reilly and Pierce. An ace by Reilly made it 19-15 Huskers. Ogbechie added another kill and a solo block by Murray put the Big Red up 21-16. Ogbechie, Adriano, Murray and Jackson tallied kills to finish off the 25-20 win.

Up Next: The Huskers finish the Ameritas Players Challenge on Sunday at 1 p.m. against California on BTN. Fans are welcome to attend the 11 a.m. match on Saturday between Cal and Wright State. Admission is free. 

Husker Women Grab Second at Platte River Rumble

The Nebraska men’s and women’s cross country teams competed at the Platte River Rumble on Friday afternoon. The women placed second in the 5k with 68 points and the men finished sixth in the 6k with 167 points. 

Alea Hardie placed sixth to lead the women, crossing the line at 17:41.62. Jaylee Wingate followed her with a time of 17:44.74 and a seventh-place finish and Erin Moore was 16th with a 18:08.46. Jordyn Brown (17th, 18:08.51) and Kate Ebmeier (23rd, 18:14.85) were next in the scoring lineup for the Huskers. Taya Fettig (32nd, 18:32.10), Zoie Ecord (46th, 19:13.65), Claire Helmers (57th, 19:14.19) and Kendall Zavala (69th, 19:35.74) rounded out the lineup. Kansas State claimed first with 34 points, Nebraska placed second with 68 and South Dakota took third with 71.

Rico Leijenaar led the men’s team, placing 11th with a time of 18:13.79. Denny Chapman (20th, 18:27.68), Riley Boonstra (39th, 18:55.74) and Gabe Nash (52nd, 19:08.59) followed for the Huskers. Kaleb Sharp (19:49.46) and Tommy Rice (20:04.91) finished 79th and 84th respectively. Iowa Western claimed first with 50 points, Northwest Missouri grabbed second place with 52 points and Kansas State took third with 79.

Up Next: NU will host the Greeno/Dirksen Invitational on Saturday, Sept. 20 in Lincoln, Neb. The meet is slated to begin at 10:00 a.m. (CT). 

Women’s Lineup (5k)
6. Alea Hardie (17:41.62)
8. Jaylee Wingate (17:44.74)
17. Erin Moore (18:08.46)
18. Jordyn Brown (18:08.51)
24. Kate Ebmeier (18:14.85)
33. Taya Fettig (18:32.10)
56. Zoie Ecord (19:13.65)
57. Claire Helmers (19:14.19)
69. Kendall Zavala (19:35.74)

Men’s Lineup (6k)
11. Rico Leijenaar (18:13.79)
20. Denny Chapman (18:27.68)
39. Riley Boonstra (18:55.74)
52. Gabe Nash (19:08.59)
79. Kaleb Sharp (19:49.46)
84. Tommy Rice (20:04.91)